Kickstart This: ‘Empyrion’ Invites You to Highest Heaven

As a species, we’ve been looking for paradise since we were first formed. The Garden of Eden, Shangri-La, Paradise Lost, Paradise By the Dashboard Light… it’s out there somewhere, right?

Eleon Game Studios, based in London, England, invites you to search beyond the stars for paradise in their forthcoming game Empyrion: Galactic Survival. In this futuristic open world adventure, the Earth has become virtually destroyed by the end of the 24th century. We did it to ourselves, of course. But the discovery of a wrecked starship in the Antarctic brings a new hope to the people – that Empyrion, the mythical land of plenty, might be found in the Andromeda Galaxy. It could be just what humanity needs to perpetuate its own survival.

After several years of preparation, a fleet of starships is made ready to voyage to Empyrion, with you as the commander of the ship Helios. But things go awry (don’t they always?) and a terrifying ordeal leaves you as the only surviving member of your crew, stranded on a hostile planet far from your planned mission. You must find a way to survive, escape, find Empyrion, and save the Earth before all life is doomed.

But you know, no pressure.

With the open world – or should we say open universe? – gameplay, you have dozens of options for what to do. You’ll search for resources and reconstruct your ship so you can escape the planet where you crash. Once spaceborne, you can go anywhere you please. Land on any planet or moon or asteroid which strikes your fancy, and adapt to its unique environment as you try to find things to help you on your way. Battle enemies, avoid dangerous atmospheric conditions, grow food, and build facilities. Gather not only resources but also vital information about the different worlds in the galaxy. Play on your own, or invite your friends to join you in multiplayer; you can be allies or enemies, your choice!

The good folks at Eleon have opened a Kickstarter in order to raise the funds necessary to bring Empyrion to full fruition. The game has been in progress for about two years, and this final push will help the developers complete their galactic mission. If all goes according to plan, the Alpha version will release in March 2015, and the Beta version will follow in August 2015. Backers will enjoy enticing rewards at various tiers, including custom USB drives, t-shirts, and subscriptions to a certain awesome magazine about indie games; at higher levels you’ll even have the opportunity to name one of the planets in the game.

PC gamers who are interested in exploring beyond the horizon will definitely want to check out Empyrion and consider donating to its Kickstarter. You can also watch the team’s progress on Facebook and Twitter, and enjoy videos of the impressive game footage on their YouTube channel.

Laura, to borrow a phrase from Metal Gear Solid 3, has one good eye and can still fire a gun. She refers to herself as a "video dame," and has been an avid gamer on various platforms since she first picked up a Pong controller over 30 years ago. She takes great delight in explaining different games to her husband.